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Deconning relics for shards ?

Hello,

I have read that the best way to get shards is to decon relics at lvl 5. Is this still true if you have the 25% crit scrolls for relic combines? I have 2 I have gotten through play somehow and lots of relics. So I would like to maximize my benefits since it seems kinda difficult to get tons of shards for making the better relics.

Actually, I think the OP has mixed both combining relics of one tier to create one of the next tier, i.e. combining 4 1st tier to create 2nd tier and refining relics for shards together. I'm pretty sure the crit scroll is only for when you're combining relics. If you crit that you will receive some shards, the higher the level combining the more shards. Refining gives a set number depending on the level and, to be honest, I don't know how many you get for each level of relic refined. Depending on how many relics you have to combine and how long the scroll lasts should determine at what level of combining you'll want to use it. I'm pretty sure you start getting a decent amount of shards on crits on 3rd or 4th level relics when combining, but it also starts getting expensive.

Well, I'm not aware of public empiric data on this so all we can do is speculate, but regarding the crit scroll there are a few things to note:
a) the effect is capped at tier 7 (I think)
b) higher tiers have a lower base-critchance
c) on lower tiers crits often yield 4+ relics and shards, at higher tiers it's rare to get more than 2 relics on a crit

In the end it's a matter of balancing shard rewards, relic supply, gold cost and time required. Personally I tend to combine all relics up to tier 5 once in a while, and then all but about 30 of each up to tier 9 (haven't done relic stuff since HD). The shards from crits combined with shards from crafted relics are generally enough for my needs, but that requires a large supply of relics (several hundred/thousand at tier 5) and gold. And if I really need some extra shards I have enough spare relics to refine.

I did this a few times last year and kept track of the results, after winning a lot of those crit scrolls in a lottery.
I can't find all my results at the moment but here is the one I have on hand:

Starting with 162 T5 relics I did 54 combines and received 78 T6 relics & 1260 shards (from the combines' critting, not from refining)

If I had refined those 162 T5 relics, I would have gotten: 12,798 shards
Using the 25% crit scroll to forge T5's into T6's and then refining the 78 T6's I would have ended up with: 14,976+1,260=16,236 shards

Personally I would not destroy any relics for shards. It takes along time to get all the tier 10 relics you need.

In my opinion it makes no sense, combine T1 relics up to 10.
Bring your LI to max (level 60) an decon them. That givs at least one, often 2, tier 7 relics when deconstructing them, along with a bunch of lower relics.
(LI with equip level 75 and above)

For turning into shards, combine relics from tier 1 up to 4 and refine them at 4. That's the best ratio I found so far. Need 10 T1 to get 1 T4 which gives 32 shards. If you combine up to T5 you need 30 T1 and get only 79 shards.

I did this a few times last year and kept track of the results, after winning a lot of those crit scrolls in a lottery.
I can't find all my results at the moment but here is the one I have on hand:

Starting with 162 T5 relics I did 54 combines and received 78 T6 relics & 1260 shards (from the combines' critting, not from refining)

If I had refined those 162 T5 relics, I would have gotten: 12,798 shards
Using the 25% crit scroll to forge T5's into T6's and then refining the 78 T6's I would have ended up with: 14,976+1,260=16,236 shards

So looks like you get an extra 26.9% shards using the crit scroll

I should have said refining not decon to avoid confusion. But the above is what I was looking for. I am looking at making relics and it seems like I am going to need tons of shards, which I don't have. I have a 25% crit scroll on combining relics to make the higher tier. So I wanted to know if I should stop at tier 5 or keep combining if my scroll is still active. I don't understand how people get enough shards to make high tier relics without refining, as one poster said. I only have one max level crafter though.

Need 10 T1 to get 1 T4 which gives 32 shards. If you combine up to T5 you need 30 T1 and get only 79 shards.

Something wrong there: Without crits you need 5 * 4 * 4 = 80 T1 for a T4. And while some crits are almost guaranteed at lower tiers you'll still need more than 10 T1 relics on average. And over time the shards and extra relics from crits (esp. when using scroll of combination) easily make up for the difference between 3 * 32 and 79 shards per refine if you can spare the gold. Plus you actually need some high-tier relics anyway for melding/slotting.

Originally Posted by dwisetiger2

I should have said refining not decon to avoid confusion. But the above is what I was looking for. I am looking at making relics and it seems like I am going to need tons of shards, which I don't have. I have a 25% crit scroll on combining relics to make the higher tier. So I wanted to know if I should stop at tier 5 or keep combining if my scroll is still active.

I'd say to combine at last up to tier 6 while the scroll is active. When you combine a large amount of relics the crits can generate a significant amount of shards (and extra relics you can refine for more shards). However it's only worth using the scroll if you actually have sufficient relics to start with, if you only have a couple hundred T1/T2 relics the benefit won't be that great. Best option is to start with a couple stacks of sealed T4+ relics for that.

I don't understand how people get enough shards to make high tier relics without refining, as one poster said. I only have one max level crafter though.

Well, from refining crafted relics you can earn over 2k (probably 3-4k) shards per week and character, but that requires a max _guilded_ crafter (of any profession) and getting the required compendiums.
Other than that I get my shards from combine crits mostly and rarely refine "regular" relics. But as said earlier, that requires a large supply of relics (mostly from deconning maxed trash LIs and instance rewards) and gold.

Here is what I would do...Save all of your relics T1-5, possibly even 6. Max level your LI's to 60, then decon for relics (usually 1xT7, 5xT6, 5xT5 or so). Combine with scroll all of your relics from T1-T4 to T5's (maybe even T5's to T6's), then refine from there for shards. If you are going for T10's/uniques use your scroll for the T6+T7 combines also. Personally I just level LI's to 60 and refine T5's and below for shards, and save the T6's and T7's for combining up to the higher level relics when I want them. I have 6 LI's with T10 or high unique relics slotted and over 300k shards. Don't forget about all the sealed/fused relics you get from instances as well.

I am taking some things for granted of course but I have Armorer, Jeweler, Tailor, Wood Worker, Scholar, Cook and Weaponsmith all guilded and cap. 8 a week in each one, 56 total. I have 30K shards or so. Just no high tier relics to put them with.

4 x 75 third age all at 60 got me 1 tier 10 relic after all the graduate melding. Shards have never been a concern for me.

With crits, it's in your best interest shard-wise to combine as high as possible, based on my experience getting to 2million+ shards. Without the scroll, and with the insane cost of higher-tier combines, you may be better off overall stopping earlier. But with the scroll, combine up to T7 at least.

Ultimately, you need to realize that shards are mostly good for two things, Unique Relics and LI scrolls. The scrolls are fairly overpriced shard wise, and I prefer to pay the medallion/mark price at skirmish camp. Unique Relics aren't that expensive shard wise. So in the end, shards are easy to get and hard to spend. I wouldn't go out of my way for shards, but a smart method of leveling LI's to level 60 then deconning should get you more than enough. Crit scrolls for combining and crafted relics for shards are really unnecessary.